There are two certainties in life. Organic deodorant will always let you down and Sean Dyche’s Burnley will make you sweat.
The Turf Moor outfit are certainly not the most odious of the North West teams, but they’re not exactly a pleasant day out. If Brexit were a football club, it’d be Burnley, and they’d be telling you that the BT Call Centre should be nearshored.
Patrick Bamford had all sorts of problems when he was there.
‘There was always that stigma because I went to private school’
Dyche thought he was a ponce because he had rich parents.
‘He said that he was fascinated by how hard I worked and that he was so impressed, especially as my dad was a billionaire.’
Bamford is from Newark, his dad a local architect. This was my fave bit.
‘I went home every night wondering how to get in the Burnley team. It was: ‘You’ve been brought up nicely, had everything handed to you’. Is that what people think just because I went to private school and played instruments?’
Imagine judging someone for playing musical instruments?
So very, very Sean Dyche.
We’ll be in for a rough ride tomorrow. The kick-off is early. That doesn’t make a difference to Arsenal, we’ve had a week off, but it might be difficult for them after their heroic point in the week against Leicester.
My hope is that the fresh legs add something to our game. Last time we had a few days off, we absolutely controlled Leeds and spanked them. I want to see that level of control tomorrow.
The thing we’re all looking for is the early goal… it’d be nice to score one, instead of conceding after 16 seconds. It’s an away game, we need to shut up shop, keep it tight, then play into their fatigue as the game goes on.
This is also a huge test of Mikel Arteta’s team when it comes to rotational intellectulus. Yep, I made that term up, but we need to see a line-up that factors winning the Europa League, and being fresh for West Ham and Sp*rs. Really, you’d hope we could go light for Burnley… but you’re messing with momentum. Fuck the Burnley game and it all falls apart.
Trends are looking good for Arsenal. Expected goals for and against are trending in the right direction according to The Athletic.
‘THE ONLY TABLE THAT MATTERS IS THE LEAGUE’, yes, yes, we hear you… but actually, the table wasn’t a good indicator of progress when we were on a 20 game unbeaten run with Emery… the xG table was the one that mattered in the longterm.
Good performances beget good results. Our results have improved, but when we were bad, we were really bad, so you aren’t seeing it in the table yet.
The next few games are hugely important. Win tomorrow and we’re 3 points off Liverpool. Beat Spurs and we’re 2 points behind them. Don’t even think about beating the mighty West Ham, they’re too good, title winners 2022.
Finally, it was nice to see Auba on a fan channel chatting to an Arsenal fan. He was smiling, saying contemporary words like sweg, and having a pretty good time by the looks of things. A far cry from the hostage video he dropped in December. If Auba is happy, everyone is happy, he seems like one of those characters whose moods have an outsized effect on everyone else. When they’re up, everyone is… when they’re down, the whole room is lead boots in the ocean.
On that note, have a great Friday night, see you bright and early for an On-The-Whistle podcast with Johnny and Matt.
Martinez fan fiction is definitely embarrassing.
45 minutes to turn this around and we will because we are going to create chances. Can’t snatch at the ball, it’s a bobbly pitch prepared by Burnley.
It’s as if it is almost too much for our professional players to go through one game without gifting our opponents opportunities for them to score against us.
It happens without fail, every game now.
Error prone and mistakes ridden.
I don’t know any company that would tolerate their key performers bungling their jobs on a regular basis.
Matt what good is showing for the ball if that’s what you do with it?
Is there a meaningful value added in showing for the ball regularly and fucking up regardless as opposed to vanishing and not being directly culpable for anything good?
Two sides of the same used toilet paper I’m afraid
China
Agree about Auba, he’s not ready to risk an injury in these situations and it’s detrimental to his efficiency ( and ours )
Thing that bothers me about xhaka is he’s bang average. Why not just use a bang average English player. Why pay £35m for a foreign bang average player. How much did Burnley’s English central midfielders cost?? Not much. Are they better. Hell yes.
Thank you and goodnight
Agreed. Crazy he has carried this team most of the season (with some help from Tierney).
All on Leno.
The player with the greater field of vision has to take the best decision, at that point in time he could see EVERYTHING as opposed to Xhaka showing for the ball, he had to make that decision instead of the pressure pass
45 minutes to turn this around and we will because we are going to create chances. Can’t snatch at the ball, it’s a bobbly pitch prepared by Burnley.
I can see Burnley also coming out more in the second half and trying to hit us on the break. We need to take our chances. There’s always an error in there from us.
@Karim “AndyAre you watching french tv as well lol ?”
They put it up on the BBC commentary – maybe that’s where the TV people picked it up? Lol
Yep blame auba and saka for not taking there chances,
Blame leno, for giving the ball to xhaka, blame arteta for picking him(to be fair thats a valid point)
But God forbid we blame captain slow and his inability to clear a ball without causing an equaliser.
He’s not good enough, he makes Ian selley and David hillier look like xavi and Iniesta. Just get rid!
Need to up the tempo and play quicker albeit keeping an eye on the ball bobbling as it is. Bring Pepe on too.
Golden rule when I played was never pass the ball across your own goal.
Xhaka our linchpin, never gets dropped, never gets injured.
We will never progress with him constantly in the side.
Leno very slow distributing the ball, hesitant and has no command in the box.
Won’t win this we are back to normal
Xhaka is at fault. If he is a leader that he always says he is I hope he’s in the dressing room apologising profusely to Leno and the team. There’s no way the goal should have been placed under that pressure when we were so comfortable.
We are our own worst enemy.
Dolomite I’m sorry but how and why was xhaka unable to pass back to Leno if he felt under pressure and unable to pick a pass of his own?
Have you never received the ball under pressure before? If you don’t fancy your chances you just give it back. This is playground stuff. No one forced him to try and do a clever pass. He tried it and failed
Don’t get me wrong Leno shouldn’t have passed to him tho
@Up 4 grabs
🤣🤣🤣🤣
*goal keeper
Hazzard… a Swiss captain sounds exotic, than a local bloke
poor from Tierney what happened to crisp crossing now?
It there an xg for mistakes? If there is i bet Xhaka is at the frigging top!. Never liked the guy
People have called better players than xhaka and Leno all sorts of filthy shit on this same blog when they gave away clangers for own goals.
Standards have dropped.
Game was meant to be easy, it now isn’t, nothing new for this arsenal.
Saka not having a good time it without bellerin behind him btw, those two have decent chemistry brewing on the right, should aide the final chapter of the season.
We are starting second half slow.
Our crossing is also generally deplorable!! I’m not sure there’s a pro team in the top leagues around europe that cross as badly and consistently as we do
China
What’s the alternative? Don’t show for the ball and give the keeper no options? I’m sure he didn’t show for the ball with the intention of then kicking it against wood and into our net. It’s Xhaka and he always has a mistake in him. We all know that and Arteta should be acutely aware of it.
Willian very static, looks like the early season nonmovement patter setting on, get him off please
China
You just prove my point… it’s always Leon’s decision. Xhaka was an option – a bad one to take and Leno took it to our detriment
First welcome sign…that ode took a shot
if Arteta doesn’t get us at the bare minimum into the Europa places/ top 6 or wins the EL, then should he be sacked?
Asking for a friend
There’s a fucking shock, xhaka with another costly brain fart
Get Willian off now. And xhaka.
Samesong,
Your example is comparing Xhaka to Auba and Saka? Come on mate. Auba and Saka are most probably the best 2 players in our team. They might not deliver sometimes but they mostly do. Who dafug is Xhaka? Nothing player really. Has been fucking us up for 5 seasons now. Nowhere near good enough. And Arteta has him a permanent fixture in his Arsenal.
I don’t know any company that would tolerate their key performers bungling their jobs on a regular basis.“
The UK government?
A shot at least
Pepe plays a blinder against Leicester, yet he’s dropped from today’s first 11 for Willian
Saka and Ode has no chemistry between them at all
Xackas head will be gone, red incoming, get him off and William, don’t be clever arteta
No explanation as to why William is still on that pitch
Sakas off
Another shot went nowhere
Arteta hasn’t a clue about game management, take him off.
But he won’t
Damn. Nearly
Arteta banking on Willian getting another assist while adding nothing to our general play but a few backwards passes.
Willian reverted to his usual shit self
Something wrong with Saka today.
TYAG
Glad I can make you laugh.
And your right pepe should have started he’s a confidence player dropping him does no good whatsoever.
Was that really a yellow ? ? Clattered into s player
I think Saka is just a bit leggy or it could be half the pitch is stuck to the bottom of his boots.
Why Martinelli isnt on the pitch right now is inexplicable…Arteta is such a stubborn and mediocre manager
Seriously this is shit. Get Pepe and Laca on
Willian hardly improved just arteta talking him up in press confs
Rap
I think you know I don’t rate Xhaka.
But when we win games I don’t hear his name (XHAKA) mentioned that Arteta picked him.
that was an individual mistake. Which the player has to put his hands up for.
I’m not defending anyone Arteta picks him however lets also talk about our player’s not taking their chances – They are that good aren’t they?? Expectations should be high
I hate the way arteta hesitates on subs. A real weakness. Shows too much fear.
Turf moor needs more turf…
I’d rather have Bischoff back in place of Xhaka. He was supposed to be wenger’s ‘quarterback’, spraying passes here and there. Instead we’ve signed the Swiss Ray Wilkins. I’ll start calling Xhaka ‘the crab’ with the amount of sideways passing he does
I’m looking at you arteta now, you have a strong bench, don’t die with your favourites.
So fucking frustrating
Looks like those missed chances in the first half will come back to bite us !
This has gone to shit now, no shape
fukkin awful football
I wish Partey would make some forward runs, but he’s no doubt staying back now to cover xhaka and his idiocy.
Burnley looking more likely to score atm
Bets for who comes off?
Anyone putting money on no appearance for martinelli? I guess he really did hit on artetas daughter.
Not been impressed with Odegaard since he’s been here by the way. Nothing special at all
We need to push up 5 yards minimum
This is what I said we have a tendancy to not put our chances away. Not ruthless enough.
Odegaard is useless
Forwards aren’t making runs either.
Put on anyone with legs.
Take off saka, no point wasting him here if he’s off tempo, plus getting subbed would rile him up for next game.
Bischoff Tyag your killing me!
The most exciting thing to date was that pigeon that was in shot
Willian is just useless
🥱 two lower half teams srapping
Yep shape is gone. No passing movements. No flow. Everyone looks shit now
What a bore !
Laca for Ode
Bischoff! Lol! Blast from the past, just went to see if he was still playing! Another Wenger classic there. This has been his career since Arsenal …
Académica
Aves
Preußen Münster
Hansa Rostock
Currently playing for Bahlinger, whoever the fuck they are.
I have not heard of any of those teams.
The press from Arsenal is non existent.
Odegard has been poor but at least he was trying to close down.
Tbf odegaard has been quiet. But Willian has been too.
Laca on, ode off. Back to eleven on the pitch
I’ve been watching Willian this half. The guy literally does nothing. He makes no effort to find space. Everything he does is half arsed.
Laca in the 10? Or is Willian moving to the 10?
lol
Who’s creating
Our form didn’t last long, back to shite in no time.
We need a CF with real presence, not a puff daddy
Completely different game now and it shouldn’t be.
Is that Laca at 10? Jeez man
Arteta is stupid.
Willian has decreased our ability to do anything.
Should have been 1st sub
Willian still on the pitch. Why was Pepe about to come then suddenly Laca gets subbed in?
Laca is the 10??? 😲
That’s poor from Willian offside there. He can see the line
Laca in the hole?
Good grief.
Good run by auba and the willian fucks up again
Laca back to his #10 role…
Saka off Pepe on now pla
Oh lord. Arteta take Saka off already you daft cunt.
Useroz
Creating?? We are relying on crosses when it’s clear auba loves the through balls.
robbie brady will score the winner from a free kick
Take saka off before he gets sent off and our season is derailed more than it already has been.
Saka must be careful. On a yellow.
Martinelli and pepe on the bench, this is shite
At some point the Burnley defence will pick out Wood with a long ball which he will lay off .
Is it just me or does Partey flatter to deceive continues to miss place passes and seems to just stroll around
Pepe and Martinelli available, and Willian still squatting with Arteta’s blessing
Unacceptable
We play down to their level.